Vital Minimum of Water for Equitable Access
Summary
Medellín's "Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable" ("Vital Minimum of Drinking Water") program provides qualifying low-income households with 2.5 cubic meters (approximately 660 gallons) of water for free per month, as per the World Health Organization's minimum water recommendations, while also financially incentivizing water conservation and training individuals in conservation methods to ensure water security for vulnerable populations while minimizing water waste.
Medellín has been tackling socioeconomic inequalities in the city's fabric (including discrepancies in access to public services) for decades. Despite these efforts, systemic inequalities leave many of the city's most impoverished and vulnerable residents without access to the public water supply. In 2009, as part of their ongoing social campaigns and efforts to elevate living standards, the city of Medellín and its public utility, Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM), created the "Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable" ("Vital Minimum of Drinking Water") program to ensure affordable access to water for all residents (Avendaño, 2011). In 2011, the national Ministry of Territorial Control and Management assumed the program, and it has since remained under its regulatory jurisdiction (Contreras Ortíz & Emiliano García, 2016).
Intervention
EPM is a multi-utility company owned by the Municipality of Medellín (to which it pays 30% of its total utility revenues) that provides water and sewerage, natural gas, electricity, telecommunication services, and solid waste collection to over 4 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area (López, 2016). The utility is generally well respected and popular throughout Medellín, in part due to its commitment to social programs in addition to regular service provision (Kugel, 2019). Although EPM collaborates with the Mayor's Office of Medellín on some programs, the utility is independent of the Mayor's Office, allowing its programs to be successful and ongoing because they remain independent of the 4-year (1-term maximum) mayoral cycle in Medellín (Kugel, 2019).
Colombia divides its population into six official socioeconomic strata. Payments for utilities (and other services) are determined accordingly on a sliding scale, with strata 5 and 6 subsidizing strata 1, 2, and 3 (and strata 4 paying market rate). Citizens in strata 1, 2, and 3, the lowest socioeconomic strata, would otherwise struggle to pay for basic needs, such as water and electricity (Kugel, 2019). EPM launched the Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program to ensure that even the most vulnerable populations in Medellín would continue to have access to water and ensure active awareness of water consumption among all water users. The program's ultimate goal is to ensure that 99% of Medellín will have regular access to the water supply system by 2030 (Vallejo Ramírez, 2019).
The Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program allocates 2.5 cubic meters of water each month to participating households, under the premise that the households' inhabitants will use the water resources responsibly (Serna Osorio, 2019). The program also deploys social workers to train participants in water-saving techniques (e.g., turning off faucets while washing teeth or dishes, reusing water from the final cycle of the washing machine to wash the bathroom, etc.) to ensure the responsible use of allocated water resources and minimize overall water consumption in the city (Serna Osorio, 2019). For families that use less than the allotted amount of water, the monthly water bill comes out to zero pesos (Serna Osorio, 2019). In order to participate in the program, the requirements for families are as follows: they must be in strata 1 or 2 (with special considerations made for some households in strata 3); they cannot have an active connection to the water supply or sewerage network of any companies that have an agreement or contract with the municipality; they cannot be up-to-date on payments; and they cannot belong to any other family support program of the Mayor's Office of Medellín (Alcalde de Medellín, Colombia, 2011; Serna Osorio, 2019).
Challenges
Despite its benefits, the green infrastructure requires regular upkeep to remain effective, particularly given Medellin’s tropical climate, which can impact plant survival. Additionally, scaling up green corridors across additional urban areas would require substantial investment, beyond initial budgets. Finally, sustained community engagement and education are necessary to maximize benefits and ensure long-term maintenance and support.
Outcomes
The Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program remains active in Medellín and has yielded numerous positive outcomes since its initiation. The program has ensured safe and convenient access to water for the city's most socioeconomically disadvantaged families while raising participant awareness about responsible water use and has succeeded in decreasing overall water consumption in many households. In its first 10 years of operation, the Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program has reached 51,567 families (over 262,000 people), thereby ensuring access to the public water supply to 97.3% of Medellin's population (Serna Osorio, 2019; Vallejo Ramírez, 2019). Of the nearly 52,000 families impacted by the program, 49% received their water and sewerage services for free due to using less water than the allocated amount (Serna Osorio, 2019). EPM's Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program enhanced relations between the state and civil society by ensuring access to water for the city's most vulnerable populations. The program itself was deemed so successful that it has since been replicated in other places throughout Colombia (Contreras Ortíz & Emiliano García, 2016).
References
Vital Minimum of Water for Equitable Access
Summary
Medellín's "Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable" ("Vital Minimum of Drinking Water") program provides qualifying low-income households with 2.5 cubic meters (approximately 660 gallons) of water for free per month, as per the World Health Organization's minimum water recommendations, while also financially incentivizing water conservation and training individuals in conservation methods to ensure water security for vulnerable populations while minimizing water waste.
Medellín has been tackling socioeconomic inequalities in the city's fabric (including discrepancies in access to public services) for decades. Despite these efforts, systemic inequalities leave many of the city's most impoverished and vulnerable residents without access to the public water supply. In 2009, as part of their ongoing social campaigns and efforts to elevate living standards, the city of Medellín and its public utility, Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM), created the "Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable" ("Vital Minimum of Drinking Water") program to ensure affordable access to water for all residents (Avendaño, 2011). In 2011, the national Ministry of Territorial Control and Management assumed the program, and it has since remained under its regulatory jurisdiction (Contreras Ortíz & Emiliano García, 2016).
Issue
Intervention
EPM is a multi-utility company owned by the Municipality of Medellín (to which it pays 30% of its total utility revenues) that provides water and sewerage, natural gas, electricity, telecommunication services, and solid waste collection to over 4 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area (López, 2016). The utility is generally well respected and popular throughout Medellín, in part due to its commitment to social programs in addition to regular service provision (Kugel, 2019). Although EPM collaborates with the Mayor's Office of Medellín on some programs, the utility is independent of the Mayor's Office, allowing its programs to be successful and ongoing because they remain independent of the 4-year (1-term maximum) mayoral cycle in Medellín (Kugel, 2019).
Colombia divides its population into six official socioeconomic strata. Payments for utilities (and other services) are determined accordingly on a sliding scale, with strata 5 and 6 subsidizing strata 1, 2, and 3 (and strata 4 paying market rate). Citizens in strata 1, 2, and 3, the lowest socioeconomic strata, would otherwise struggle to pay for basic needs, such as water and electricity (Kugel, 2019). EPM launched the Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program to ensure that even the most vulnerable populations in Medellín would continue to have access to water and ensure active awareness of water consumption among all water users. The program's ultimate goal is to ensure that 99% of Medellín will have regular access to the water supply system by 2030 (Vallejo Ramírez, 2019).
The Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program allocates 2.5 cubic meters of water each month to participating households, under the premise that the households' inhabitants will use the water resources responsibly (Serna Osorio, 2019). The program also deploys social workers to train participants in water-saving techniques (e.g., turning off faucets while washing teeth or dishes, reusing water from the final cycle of the washing machine to wash the bathroom, etc.) to ensure the responsible use of allocated water resources and minimize overall water consumption in the city (Serna Osorio, 2019). For families that use less than the allotted amount of water, the monthly water bill comes out to zero pesos (Serna Osorio, 2019). In order to participate in the program, the requirements for families are as follows: they must be in strata 1 or 2 (with special considerations made for some households in strata 3); they cannot have an active connection to the water supply or sewerage network of any companies that have an agreement or contract with the municipality; they cannot be up-to-date on payments; and they cannot belong to any other family support program of the Mayor's Office of Medellín (Alcalde de Medellín, Colombia, 2011; Serna Osorio, 2019).
Challenges
Despite its benefits, the green infrastructure requires regular upkeep to remain effective, particularly given Medellin’s tropical climate, which can impact plant survival. Additionally, scaling up green corridors across additional urban areas would require substantial investment, beyond initial budgets. Finally, sustained community engagement and education are necessary to maximize benefits and ensure long-term maintenance and support.
Outcomes
The Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program remains active in Medellín and has yielded numerous positive outcomes since its initiation. The program has ensured safe and convenient access to water for the city's most socioeconomically disadvantaged families while raising participant awareness about responsible water use and has succeeded in decreasing overall water consumption in many households. In its first 10 years of operation, the Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program has reached 51,567 families (over 262,000 people), thereby ensuring access to the public water supply to 97.3% of Medellin's population (Serna Osorio, 2019; Vallejo Ramírez, 2019). Of the nearly 52,000 families impacted by the program, 49% received their water and sewerage services for free due to using less water than the allocated amount (Serna Osorio, 2019). EPM's Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable program enhanced relations between the state and civil society by ensuring access to water for the city's most vulnerable populations. The program itself was deemed so successful that it has since been replicated in other places throughout Colombia (Contreras Ortíz & Emiliano García, 2016).
Issues |
|---|
Water Scarcity and Access |
Solutions |
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Affordable & Inclusive Water Access |
References
Alcalde de Medellín, Colombia. (2011). DECRETO 1889 (3950 ed., p. 22). Medellín, Colombia: Gaceta Oficial.
Avendaño, R. D. (2011). Pro-poor financing and tariffs in Medellín, Colombia. UN-Water International Conference. Water in the Green Economy in Practice: Towards Rio+20. Zaragoza, Spain.
Contreras Ortíz, Y., & Emiliano García, M. (2016). Gestión del Agua. Caso: Mínimo Vital de Agua Potable (Rep.). Programa Internacional de Cooperación Urbana (IUC).
Kugel, S. (2019, October 11). Medellín’s Other Success Story: How the City Cleaned Up Its Water. Retrieved July 28, 2020, from https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/medellins-other-success-story-how-the-city-cleaned-up-its-water/
López, M. (2016). Promoting public engagement to improve water services in Medellín. Water Integrity Network. Retrieved July 28, 2020, from https://www.waterintegritynetwork.net/2016/04/01/promoting-public-engagement-to-improve-water-services-in-medellin/
Serna Osorio, J. F. (2019, August 12). En 10 años el Mínimo Vital de Agua ha llegado a más de 50.000 hogares. Retrieved July 28, 2020, from https://www.medellincuenta.com/?NavigationTarget=navurl%3A%2F%2F57f6f1426a1dc6330255c3765d6785cf
Vallejo Ramírez, S. (2019, July 18). De nuevo, otros 100 hogares tienen conexión de agua potable. Retrieved July 28, 2020, from https://www.medellincuenta.com/?NavigationTarget=navurl%3A%2F%2F72bb7ad2f1aec3de53080f34d6934771